Surging crude prices are dragging on U.S. futures after President Donald Trump rejectedIran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran had offered to reopen the strait and resume talks on its nuclear program if the U.S. lifts its naval blockade of Iranian ports, waives sanctions on Iranian oil sales and observes a ceasefire that would include Lebanon.

Russia's round-the-clock bombardment of targets in Ukraine killed at least seven people and wounded more than 50 others, officials said Monday.

Moscow's forces pounded apartment buildings, offices, data centers and a building of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in downtown Kyiv.

Three officials tell The Associated Press that mediators were still working with Iran and the United States on a deal to end the fighting and open the Strait of Hormuz, with the indirect talks expected to resume on Monday.

The details were revealed as the war enters its eighth month after causing widespread economic suffering. Multiple efforts to allow safe shipping on one of the world's most crucial waterways have failed.

Benjamin Netanyahu traveled secretly to the United Arab Emirates over the weekend to ask its leader to deny reports he'd warned the Israeli prime minister about a looming Hamas threat ahead of the Palestinian militant group's Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.

The meeting between Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan took place on Sunday, two people who were briefed on the Israeli leader's trip confirmed on Monday.

Rain eases in Bangkok but persistent flooding forces thousands to leave home

Rain eased in Thailand 's capital on Sunday, but flooding persisted in several low-lying areas, with thousands forced to move into temporary shelters. At least eight people were reported killed in the past 10 days nationwide.

South Korea called for an official apology from Ukraine after the Ukrainian president revealed what Seoul says was supposed to be a secret transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.

Volodymyr Zelensky told the U.N. General Assembly last week that Ukraine had recently sent the men to South Korea after capturing them on a Ukraine-Russia battlefield in early 2025. The two are among thousands of North Korean soldiers sent to support Russia's war against Ukraine.

President Donald Trump has justified the pending U.S. arms sale to Taiwan to Chinese President Xi Jinping by downplaying it as just one of many sales Washington makes around the world — even asking Xi if he'd be in the market for U.S. arms, Trump's ambassador to China said on Sunday.

David Perdue said Trump raised the prospect of the arms sales from the U.S. to its ascendant geopolitical rival, an unlikely offer that if consummated would upend generations of U.S. policy toward China and Taiwan and potentially expose U.S. technology to a potential foe. Perdue, speaking to Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday" days after Trump hosted Xi for a state visit in Washington, didn't specify when the offer was made.

Taylor Swift broke records at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, as she is known to do.

The pop powerhouse received the inaugural Artist Director Honors on Sunday night, becoming the most-awarded artist in VMA history.

Pope Leo XIV urged religious leaders on Monday to preach messages of peace and unity as he wrapped up a visit to France by recalling the forces of dialogue that contributed to Europe's post-World War II integration.

Leo traveled to the eastern city of Metz, near the border with Luxembourg and Germany, to preside over an interreligious meeting. It was held at a conference center named for Robert Schuman, a French Catholic statesman regarded as one of the founding fathers of European unity.

The United States and China released Monday reciprocal lists of products worth about $30 billion each that will see tariff cuts, in a deal expected to boost bilateral trade.

The details came days after Chinese President Xi Jinping met with President Donald Trump in Washington in his first state visit to the U.S. since 2015. The U.S. had already reduced tariffs against China after Trump's tariffs reached as high as 145% at one point last year, as tensions between the two countries eased.